Micromobility operators get on board with Sight Loss Council

Two e-bike / e-scooter operators have been working with the Sight Loss Council over the last few days to understand how the presence of their equipment on the street can affect blind and sight-impaired people.

Voi visit Liverpool
In Liverpool, e-scooter and e-bike operator Voi and Merseyside Sight Loss Council visited popular parking bays across the city and took photos of different parking scenarios to show the impact of bad parking on this community.

The photos were then manipulated to give an idea of what people with different sight loss conditions might be seeing see when they encounter thoughtless e-scooter parking.

In the scenario below, e-scooters are shown scattered across the pavement outside the University of Liverpool. The second image is a representation of how someone with central vision loss – which can be caused by age-related macular degeneration – might see the scene. The toppled scooters are mainly not visible

Jim Hubbard, senior public policy manager at Voi UK, said: ‘The majority of Voi riders in Liverpool park responsibly – and in fact good parking is well over 90%.

‘However, there is always more to do to promote safer, more courteous riding behaviour that does not unfairly burden other road users – including disabled pedestrians.

‘We are grateful to Merseyside Sight Loss Council for working with us on this project, which we hope will lead to even better parking in the city.”

Kelly Barton, engagement manager for Thomas Pocklington Trust’s Sight Loss Council, said: ‘E-scooters in Liverpool can, and often do, pose a real problem for blind and partially sighted people.

‘The main issue seems to be the way that they are just left on pavements and become trip hazards for cane and guide dog users.

‘Merseyside Sight Loss Council is really keen to work with Voi to bring about change. We are really keen to share our lived experience and personal stories of how these e-scooters have impacted our daily lives and want to get behind the campaign to encourage riders to park more responsibly.

‘We are very keen for Voi to get this message out and we hope that riders will start to think about how dumping an e-scooter on a walkway will affect someone who can’t see.’

Voi has been operating in Liverpool since October 2020. In the last four years, Voi’s rental e-scooters and e-bikes have been used over six million times by almost 300,000 people – with 35% of regular riders relying on Voi for commuting to work or university.

Lime signs Sight Loss Council e-bike charter
E-bike operator Lime this week became the first organisation to sign up to the Sight Loss Council e-bike charter, which calls for operators, local authorities and governing bodies to sign up to six key principles, ensuring the safety of blind and partially sighted pedestrians.

The charter recommends the following measures:

1. provide parking bays and racks where users should park e-bikes. These should usually be on the carriageway to avoid obstructing pedestrians. By exception, parking may be on the pavement but must be safe and segregated. Where parking is not provided nearby, users should park e-bikes safely and securely.
2. put in place a Reporting and Monitoring framework of e-bike providers’ performance and make non-commercially sensitive results publicly available. This should include robust targets for speedy retrieval of abandoned or poorly parked e-bikes, or those not parked in designated bays.
3. provide one universally accessible way BPS people and other digitally excluded residents can report e-bike incidents.
4. commit to ensuring reasonable maximum weight and speed restrictions of rental e-bikes. Work towards implementing common restrictions as quickly as possible.
5. work towards ensuring all rental e-bikes are fitted with some form of audible alert equipment. For example, a horn or bell  that can be operated by riders to warn pedestrians.
6. work together to minimise incidents of rental e-bikes used in pavement riding, including through trialling available technology and advocating for robust police enforcement.

Lime have a long-standing relationship with the Sight Loss Council, they participated in the London SLC visual impairment forum on e-scooters in April 2022 and have messaged all registered Lime e-bike users about safe parking and the impact of inappropriate parking on BPS people.

Fiona Deunyas, Public Affairs Manager at Lime, said: ‘We are proud to be the first signatory of this charter. Its sensible recommendations to provide increased dedicated parking through use of cycle stands and allow for flexible, non-obstructive parking where dedicated parking is not provided are welcome.

‘We look forward to working with SLC and our partner Councils to implement these measures and continuing to improve the experience of our service for people with access needs.’

Haren Thillainathan, London SLC volunteer, said: ‘As a visually impaired person in London, I’ve increasingly experienced the issue of poorly parked or abandoned e-bikes obstructing pavements.

‘Feedback from our SLC work confirms this is a major concern for many blind and partially sighted people, affecting their daily lives.

‘I initially hoped the government would introduce legislation to address this, but once it became clear this wouldn’t happen, I didn’t want this to be an excuse for inaction. This led to the creation of the e-bike charter.

‘The charter aims to bring together bike operators and local authorities to implement safer and more secure arrangements for the parking and operation of e-bikes in London and beyond, while developing long-term solutions.

‘I’m delighted that Lime has backed the charter and agreed to become its first signatory. Having their support as a leading e-bike operator is fantastic and strengthens our collaborative partnership established over the last few years.’